The climate in Maine this summer has not been great for most vegetables, but the squash - well that's another story. The farmers' markets and farm stands are overwhelmed in the yellow and green goodness that is the staple of every summer garden. Our own measly backyard garden is producing at an astounding rate - we even found our first pie pumpkin this morning!

My kids are not that interested in squash, but they eat it 12 months a year. I can't get enough of it - soups, stir fries, baked & stuffed, shredded, raw, cookies & pies - so I have to find ways to incorporate it into dinner without them disliking it. If I stuff it, they eat the insides. If I stir fry it, they will usually pick it out. But if I shred it....oh the things I have done with shredded squash. Tonight's dinner was created for just this occasion! The shredded summer squash acted like a noodle in this decadent summer soup, and my kids devoured it none-the-wiser.

The other stars of this delicious soup were inspired by what we could cut from the garden, and what my SO could grab from the Swango Farm Stand, where he works. He came home with a bushel of summer squash and added that to our growing stock, plus a handful of onions. In the garden we have fresh Swiss chard and chives, which I gathered up. In the cupboard we had some canned beans, a perfect source of protein for my mostly vegetarian family.

Beautiful fresh ribbons of Swiss Chard not 5 minutes after I snipped them from the garden.

Fresh chives from the garden add the perfect pop for this savory soup.

This is the time of year when zucchini and summer squash run rampant through our gardens. You can buy it by the bag loads from farm stands and farmers' markets. Most of us can get bushels from friends who are overwhelmed with these long, vivacious green and yellow vegetables. We eat zucchini bread, fry rounds of them in butter, stuff them, make noodles from them, and try to find a number of other ways to use up the plethora of zucchini and summer squash we are surrounded by.

My kids eat just about anything, but they have already reached their limit of these summer vegetables. I know have to find new and creative ways to use them up. Tonight's dinner was a win in all categories. The kids got homemade macaroni and cheese, I served them a healthy dose of summer squash, and the SO gave it two thumbs up. I cheated on the sauce, admittedly, because I was lazy and it needed to be used up, but you can make a roux and a white sauce from scratch.